What is it?
Beyond coronary angiography, there are other diagnostic studies performed by catheterization to evaluate in detail how the heart and blood vessels function, when non-invasive studies are not enough to complete the diagnosis.
What is it used for?
They are used to deepen cardiovascular evaluation in specific situations — for example, pressure measurements inside the heart or functional tests — as determined by the treating medical team.
How is it performed, in general terms?
As with the rest of hemodynamics procedures, access is gained through an arterial puncture, usually in the wrist or the groin, under local anesthesia, and a catheter is used to perform the measurements or study indicated.
Typical preparation
Specific preparation depends on the study indicated and is determined by the treating team before the procedure. You can review the general guidelines for preparing for a study, which always work alongside your physician's specific instructions.
What happens afterward?
It depends on the study performed. The medical team provides the corresponding instructions about rest and follow-up checks.
Frequently asked questions
It varies by case. [PENDING INFORMATION] — the detailed list of these studies has not yet been confirmed by SAH.
Not necessarily. Coronary angiography is one of the hemodynamics studies; other invasive diagnostic studies exist with different goals, depending on what the medical team needs to evaluate.